Natural vs sustainable: Cosmetic ingredients’ exploitation of environmental resources

Natural cosmetic ingredients require large amounts of resources, such as land and water, complicating sustainability in the manufacturing process. Assuming that “natural equals sustainable” creates a fine line to greenwashing, and labels often mislead consumers into making unsustainable choices.

Ahead of the EU’s Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which is set to take effect later this year, Personal Care Insights sits down with industry experts to discuss the complexity of sustainability that the natural cosmetics industry faces.

“Natural cosmetics can have significant negative environmental impacts, despite their eco-friendly image. A prominent case that has lost its natural, sustainable image is palm oil — widely used in soaps, lotions, and makeup,” Thomas Collier, CEO at Levur, tells us.

Palm oil cultivation has caused significant deforestation. “An estimated forest area of 300 football fields is cleared every hour for palm plantations. Such land clearing destroys habitats of endangered species, such as orangutans and tigers, and releases massive carbon emissions,” he says.

Dr. Barbara Olioso, founder of the Green Chemist and Green Chem Finder, adds: “All cosmetics, natural or not, have a sustainability impact or footprint. All ingredients have a level of processing requiring the use of resources such as water and electricity, and the use of various substances, including the actual manufacturing of cosmetics.”

Deforestation regulation

The EUDR was first announced in 2023, and its implementation was delayed to December 2025. According to the European Commission (EC), the delay aims to give companies and authorities more preparation time. 

The EUDR will impact natural ingredients’ supply chains and ban the import or sale of products linked to recent deforestation. It will also guide the industry by indirectly supporting agroforestry, using regenerative agriculture for raw materials. It also pushes beauty companies to reformulate their products and ingredient development to use alternatives such as lab-grown equivalents or agricultural byproducts. 

The EUDR targets commodities such as cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soy, and wood.Collier details that the EUDR targets commodities such as cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soy, and wood, as well as their derivative products.

“Companies may need to drop suppliers who cannot provide proof of no-deforestation or help them adapt, posing challenges for natural cosmetics production. Smaller cosmetic brands might struggle with the administrative burden of compliance and mapping their often-complex ingredient supply chains,” he says.

“Overall, this essentially forces the cosmetics sector to clean up its raw materials sourcing, reporting, and to regain the sector’s reputation — a necessary shift to stop beauty products from indirectly funding forest destruction.”

Olioso tells us that the industry is working hard to achieve sustainability and is gradually moving toward a circular approach, choosing biodegradable and renewable ingredients. 

“We are becoming more aware of the state of environmental exploitation, so it is essential to source natural ingredients with transparent supply chains to trace how the ingredients were sourced, to avoid feeding deforestation and the loss of biodiversity or even child labour and other unethical practices,” she says. 

Fine line to greenwashing

The personal care industry uses many green marketing strategies. The EU Green Claims Initiative, introduced in 2023, aims to combat greenwashing. However, earlier this week, Personal Care Insights reported that the EC publicly announced an intention to withdraw the initiative, arguing it would impose too high a burden on small businesses.

“Labeling a cosmetic as natural or plant-based often implies it’s eco-friendly, but this can be a form of greenwashing if the product’s lifecycle isn’t sustainable. Many brands play up buzzwords like ‘natural, organic, chemical-free, or eco-friendly’ without proof of real environmental benefits,” says Collier. 

“For example, a face cream might boast it contains only botanical oils, leading consumers to believe it’s sustainably made, while in reality those oils might be sourced from water-intensive crops or farms linked to deforestation.”

He stresses that highlighting “naturally derived” ingredients distracts from issues like the high carbon footprint caused by transporting exotic ingredients or wasteful packaging.

Labeling a cosmetic as natural can be a form of greenwashing if the product’s lifecycle isn’t sustainable, says Collier.Collier says that not all promotion of natural ingredients is greenwashing. It crosses into greenwashing when companies imply natural equals sustainable without transparency or certification. 

Olioso stresses that sustainability is a very complex jigsaw of several criteria.

She exemplifies biodegradable ingredients that boost biodiversity, but these may have a higher carbon footprint because of ingredient shipping. Alternatively, synthetic cosmetics may have a low carbon footprint but a poor end-of-life impact on the environment.

“The solution to this is specific claims rather than generic, even if generic is easy to understand. I would say the industry is in the process of unravelling this complexity and making its communication more accessible without confusing or overwhelming the consumer,” says Olioso. 

Overharvesting to extinction

Natural sourcing can also lead to resource waste and pollution. Only a small fraction of a plant may yield the desired extract, so most biomass is discarded.

“In essential oil production, over 90% of the plant material is thrown away after extraction, often rotting in landfills and emitting greenhouse gases. There are also cases of overharvesting of wild plants for cosmetics. High demand for exotic natural ingredients can endanger those species,” says Collier.

Collier exemplifies that Frankincense resin, commonly used in fragrances, has become popular in wellness and beauty products. “Intensified tapping of frankincense trees in East Africa is driving them toward potential extinction. One study warns 90% of Boswellia trees could disappear by 2060 under current practices.”

Olioso adds that most cosmetics end up in wastewater treatment plants, so biodegradability, a standard quality of natural ingredients and cosmetics, is essential for the planet’s future. 

“It is more about using natural cosmetic ingredients with a clear sustainability strategy and keeping up to date with the latest innovations to support this transition to circular beauty,” says Olioso. 

Land, water, and crops

Many popular beauty product ingredients are derived from crops such as oils, butters, and waxes.  Collier tells us that producing natural cosmetic ingredients often requires substantial land and water, “sometimes shockingly so.”

Olioso says some crops require less water at the farming stage but might require more energy for the extraction stage.This cultivation can compete with land for food production and strain water resources, especially in drought-prone regions. For example, sourcing certain plant extracts or vitamins for cosmetics from fruits and herbs is inefficient. 

“To obtain just 1 kg of the antioxidant naringenin, you would need around 3,356 grapefruits, 0.37 acres of farmland, and 38,600 liters of water. Similarly, producing a small amount of essential oil can require huge biomass and water: about 250,000 rose petals yield only 5 ml of rose oil – consider the hectares of roses and irrigation behind one tiny bottle of rose-scented oil.” 

Olioso says some crops require less water at the farming stage but might require more energy for the extraction stage.

Calling for transparency

Olioso stresses the need for transparency and information so that the industry can use the data to make decisions about selecting new ingredients. 

“Price is important, but the sustainability data behind an ingredient is needed to develop resilient and future-proof formulations. Choosing ingredients considering several sustainability parameters can be quite time-consuming, as the data needs to be acquired properly,” she says.

Olioso details that the Green Chem Finder tool has been created to help formulators choose ingredients for green preservation based on cosmetic science and sustainability, such as biodegradability, palm status, natural content, and regulatory criteria in one place.

“Beyond organic or natural labels, new seals for ‘deforestation-free’ or ‘biotech-derived’ could guide consumers. The right transparency will help truly sustainable products stand apart from greenwashed ones,” says Collier. 

“Natural cosmetics can be part of a sustainable future only if we fundamentally change how those natural resources are obtained and used, combining the ingenuity of biotechnology with a deep respect for our planet’s ecological limits.”